SCHOLA GLADIATORIA FORUM

Philip Tom wrote:The tunkou has an entirely different origin, as evidenced by its shape. This feature first appeared on saber blades made in various areas of inner Asia during the Middle Ages. A considerable number of backsword and saber blades uncovered in the Yenisei region, western Siberia, dating from approx. 9th cent. onward, have this feature (see Yu. S. Khudyakov, VOORUZHENIYE YENISEYSKIKH KYRGYZOV / armament of the Yenisei Khirghiz, Soviet Academy of Sciences, Siberian Branch, 1980).

A magnificent example of a Seljuk (Turkish) saber blade, thought to have been made near Herat ca. 1200, has a blade profile and a tunkou which could almost pass for a Ming or Qing liuyedao were it not for its decoration. It is published in ORIENTAL SPLENDOUR: ISLAMIC ART FROM GERMAN PRIVATE COLLECTIONS (Museum fuer Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg 1993).

Tunkou were most often made of iron or brass, although I have seen silver and baitong ("white" brass, cupronickel alloy) examples as well. They can be a very tight press fit onto the blade, or else they are made to fit snugly yet slide off without much effort. Since the edge side is longer than the dorsal, the blade shoulders are cut asymmetrically to enable the tunkou to fit against the guard without shifting fore-and-aft. The asymmetrical form is what distinguishes a tunkou from a habaki, although their function is similar.

On some Chinese blades, the tunkou is part of the blade itself, comprising a shaped raised area at the forte. There are a few examples in which the tunkou, here being merely a decorative feature, is but a design which is inlaid into the forte in gold or silver. There is a saber made for a "doroi beile" or Imperial prince of the third rank with an import Japanese blade inlaid in just such a fashion, in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The use of the tunkou was not universal on Chinese sabers. It was fairly common on early Qing blades, but its use decreased during the 19th cent.

Philip Tom wrote:The tunkou serves a similar function on a peidao as the habaki does on a Japanese blade: it helps stabilize the weapon's handguard, and enables a snug, positive "seating" for the forte of the blade when the weapon is fully sheathed. Ideally, when the blade is in the scabbard, it should be supported by the wood at only two points: at the tip, and at the very base of the guard.

By having "air space" around the blade every where else, the surface can be protected from scratches (during field service and combat, all kinds of dirt and unwanted foreign matter can enter the mouth of the scabbard). Also, in rainy weather when even the most-carefully-seasoned wooden sheaths can swell, there is less chance of the blade being stuck fast in the scabbard.

Blades designed without a tunkou can still be made to fit well into a scabbard. Distal taper, with the forte being considerably thicker than the rest of the blade, can be utilized to advantage in fitting a scabbard. A skilled scabbard maker can design the blade channel, and the crucial two or three inches at the throat, in a number of ways to fit many blade configurations, including the niuweidao (ox tail sabers) which are notably wider towards the tip. I've seen enough old scabbards in good condition to have been able to learn these techniques myself.

One last thing. THE TUNKOU DOES NOT DERIVE FROM THE HABAKI, OR VICE VERSA. Perish the thought, folks, it just ain't so.

Archeological evidence places the origin of the tunkou in Central Asia. Sabers and backswords made by various peoples, primarily of Turkic culture, between the 7th and 13th cents. AD often have this feature, which looks not at all unlike the Chinese versions of the 16th through 19th cents.

Ulrich von L...n wrote:

srpsko_gracanica.jpg

A fresco (1321-1322) from the Gračanica monastery (Serbian Orthodox monastery located in Kosovo).

I have been unable to find out more about this saint (Nikita, Saint Nicetas?). There is an interesting feature on the blade next to the crossguard.